Timberwolves Come Back, Take Down Sixers 106-99

Wednesday night’s home game did not get off to a pretty start for the Timberwolves, but the team rallied in the 4th quarter. Minnesota overcame a 19-point deficit to take down the Sixers 106-99. Kevin Love led his team with 26 points and 15 rebounds, followed by Ricky Rubio with 21 points. On the opposing side, Spencer Hawes and Tony Wroten came away with 20 points apiece.

Wolves fans experienced an emotional roller coaster. With their team coming off a big win over Detroit on the road, they hoped to see the same explosive play at home. The first half certainly looked nothing like Tuesday night, however.

(photo credit: Kare11.com)

Minnesota struggled early on in the game, fighting to keep up with Philly during the first quarter. Rubio added nine points to bring his team to within three at the 3:02 mark, but the Sixers answered by going on a 16-0 run to close out the period.

Quarter 2 did not prove much better.

The Sixers scored 18 fast-break points and seemed to hit almost every bucket they threw up. At the close of the half, they were shooting 63.4 percent from the floor and led the Wolves 61-48.

“We know exactly what [the 76ers] are going to do,” said Coach Rick Adelman postgame. “they are going to run it down the court and try to attack the basket as quickly as they can and they just got it going and got us on our heels.”

Minnesota didn’t back down, though. Adelman led his team out of the locker room to start the third quarter, and the Wolves were ready to go.

Love and Rubio added seven and five points, respectively, and Corey Brewer added eight points as well, including two three-point buckets. The Wolves outscored their opponents by 10 for the quarter, and the team–and fans–showed a new level of energy headed into the fourth.

Robbie Hummel came off the bench to score Minnesota’s first basket of the quarter: a nice three-point shot from the corner that brought the Wolves within two of Philly. The second-year forward proved a major key to his team’s win, as he tallied 10 points, three rebounds and a steal in just under 12 minutes on the hardwood.

“[Robbie] made shots but he also made a nice job defensively on the boards, too,” Adelman said. “He gave us the spark we needed.”

It may not have been a beautiful game overall, but in the end, Minnesota’s 38.5 percent shooting and solid defense was enough to grab a second consecutive win.

Adelman said the following about the team’s come-from-behind performance:

“Usually it’s hard to have that happen and win the game. We got the win, but hopefully we learned a lesson.”

(photo credit: StarTribune.com)

3 Stars of the Game

Kevin Love: Love proved once again why he is one of the top forwards in the league. In addition to his double-double, Love also tallied five assists and two steals on the evening.

Ricky Rubio: The point guard may not be known as a scorer, but Rubio has proven critics wrong a few times this season. Minnesota would not have landed a win without his 21 points, and Rubio once again topped the chart with seven assists and three steals.

Spencer Hawes: Hawes was definitely his team’s most all-around player Wednesday night. The forward shot 58 percent from the floor, including 4-of-5 from behind the three-point line. Hawes also blocked three of Minnesota’s shots.

Key Takeaways

Minnesota’s win might have come a little easier with a stronger presence from Kevin Martin. Philly held the shooting guard to one of his least-productive games of the season — Martin went 0-7 during the first half, and he finished the game with only five points.

It may seem obvious, but the Wolves need to step up their shooting if they expect to keep winning. They squeaked out a victory with a tough defensive performance and some solid perimeter shooting, but 38 percent will not be enough to make headway in the competitive Western Conference.

The 76ers have now dropped 12 of their last 14 games and nine in a row on the road. Wednesday night’s loss at the Target Center dropped Philly to No. 13 in the Eastern Conference with a 7-16 overall record.

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